Mini-Reviews: Books I've Neglected

And we're back to books.

P.S. I appreciate all the kind words on my last post! You guys always make my day.

So I've been slacking in the reading department. Big time. I'm not going to deny that things have been super crazy around here. A (not so) tiny glimpse: the weekend before last, my brother was married to my beautiful sister-in-law; I got engaged; I took a super quick trip to Chicago shortly thereafter; I've been doing real deal photo-shoots with LOTS of editing; and I've made vigorous exercise apart of the daily routine for good. SO. I haven't had the time to read anything!

I'm also going to admit that it isn't just the time that's kept me from reading (although that's certainly where the majority of the blame lies)! Lately I've found that I'm just not in the mood to read. It's a little scary, to be honest. I don't think there's ever been a time when I didn't feel like reading. I don't think it will last forever, but I doubt it will wear off anytime soon. 

There are some things that are coming up that I can't quite share yet, but will be definitely taking more time away from this space. I'm not walking away from Bookworm Meets Bookworm, but taking a little break for a bit.

Because I feel like the world's worst book blogger for finishing a few titles and then scarcely mentioning them, here are some abbreviated reviews of books I've finished:

The Dinner

Herman Koch

Four parents meet at a posh restaurant in Amsterdam to discuss a deed their children have committed. All seems somewhat normal in the beginning, and contains the caustic humor I love so much, but Koch slowly reveals its darker side and all hell breaks loose. While I've seen this one compared to Gone Girl, I'm not completely convinced this title rivals GG's suspense factor. It was definitely full of the moral bankruptcy that's so popular and makes for a good read in the WTF department.

Tell the Wolves I'm Home

Carol Rifka-Brunt

A coming-of-age story that takes places in the mid eighties in New York City. Young June must come to term with the loss of the only person in her life she's ever felt truly connected to, her Uncle Finn. Facing his death, through circumstances that have swept the nation, is no easy task. June is forced with the burden of carrying her own grief, while also recognizing that her mother's and sister's. There were SO many notable moments in this novel, it'd take me days to write it all down. I really connected with this novel because of its emphasis on the emotional impact of losing a loved one. The subject matter is profound and somewhat unsettling. Rifka-Brunt really packs a punch with this one!

The Investigation

Phillippe Claudill

This book has been compared to Kafka again and again. Sadly, I'll admit that I've never read Kafka. I have a vague idea of his style and so forth, but not enough to make the comparison myself. While The Investigation is a very well-written, and well-thought out novel (great translation I should add), the conclusion was quite hurried and let me down. It took me several weeks to muster up the energy to pick it up again, and it's a slimmer novel coming in at around 215 pages or so! Imagine any Ben Stiller movie (where everything that will go wrong does) and then make it much more serious and kind of saddening and majorly frustrating. So. I would say that if you enjoy Kafka, give it a shot. It's not the most engrossing novel, but it wouldn't be a complete waste of time.


I'm currently working on She Rises for the TLC Book tour event. Stay tuned for the review and your chance to win a copy!

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